THE
presence of insects in a garden is a cause for concern. Familiarising
the gardeners with the common garden pests should be a priority. There
are certain insects that have strange dwellings and eating habits and
their camouflage is so perfect that it is a matter of surprise when
these insects are exposed.

A borer makes its abode near irregular cut ends

One of the most
common and probably the most damaging insect is the stem borer. The
insect is not specific to any tree and you must inspect your trees now
if you have not done so in the near past. You will find it on one or
the other tree or do not get surprised if it has invaded all of them.
When most of the time I find that careless workers in the garden
remove twigs or branches just by pulling them out or by using crude
implements, thereby making irregular cuts. There can not be a more
conducive place for insects to breed.

Garden pests mostly
make their abode in crotches, where two stems merge together, or near
crudely-cut ends. The damage caused by the stem borer is multipronged.
It not only eats away the outside bark but also makes holes in the
stems or the main trunk, penetrating, deep in the plant. There it
secretes some damaging fluid, thereby blackening the tissues that
conduct food. Can you recognise the borer? See the accompanying
picture.

The borer, usually referred to as
belonging to the Inderbela species, lives in holes. After feeding, it
ventures out and to escape the sight of the prowling predators, it goes
on making a tunnel of its own excreta that is held together by webbing.
It feeds below their protective camouflage. In case, due care is not
taken to control it, you may find so many of these pests feeding on the
stems. The result is drying of the branches. You may find this insect
either on guava, pear and pomegranate trees or on plants of the citrus
species.

It is not difficult to
control this insect. Remove the web with some twig. It is loosely
attached and comes off easily. You might also find the deep brown
caterpillar in case you were fast enough to remove it before it retreats
into the hole. Do not worry. Inject Methyl Parathion into the hole
caused by the borer, after dissolving it at four millilitre to one litre
of water, with the help of a used syringe in the hole. You may use other
commonly-available insecticides in your gardening kit. Do not forget to
plug the hole with wet soil or cotton.

It is better to take preventive
measures too. Round off all the cut ends with the help of a pruning saw.
Apply some disinfectant at the cut ends. Spray rogor or metasystox
dissolved at one millilitre to one litre of water. Repeat the spray
after a fortnight.